jim1973

@Melvin- ModeratorYes there is generic Dutasteride as an option but so many people state generic meds don't work as well. Was wondering what others thought about this subject.

Thank you for posting. As someone who is considering topical Dutasteride, this is refreshing. Are you partial to a particular company/brand for your topical Dut?

@mustang I'd also be curious as to what the delivery vehicle of the medication is (or where you purchase from). I see alot of people recommending liposomal delivery, while others state it works too slow and that either an alcohol base or glycol base would work better. Between all of the products available (Hims, Keeps, Xyon, Strut, Happy, Head, etc. I'm not sure where to begin especially if they all sell basically the same products). Any recommended inactive ingredients to include?

@mustang I'm curious as to where you purchase your topical product from and what amount you apply every 10 days. (This is a very long thread and can't seem to find where you stated your regime). I'm interested in starting topicals but just now researching and not sure how much and how often. Thanks in advance.

I have been taking name brand Avodart (Dutasteride) for the last 10 months but given the recent price increase of Avodart (brand name of Dutasteride), I will need to find an alternative option. Would you recommend simply going to generic Dutasteride? Going to brand name Propecia? Or starting a topical application of either DUT or FIN?

I made this switch 10 months ago. No improvement whatsoever.

It seems that every topical product I see (topical Min, Fin, Dut) all contain either Propylene Glycol or Alcohol as a carrying agent. Are there any other options for carrying agents that would be considered less harsh or cause less itching/redness to a scalp (or any other products that exist) without either of these 2 agents? I know liquid Rogaine has the Propylene Glycol and many people experience scalp irritation, which is why they also migrate to the foam (although I'm not sure what the carrying agent is in the foam). Anyone understand the these ingredients and why they are needed and what the various options are? I'm considering having a pharmacy compound a specific formula for me but really need to know what inactive ingredients would be needed in order for the product to work properly with the least chances of scalp irritation.

I'm interested also. I recently got my results back from the Trichotest and the topical recommendations were Melatonin, Dutasteride and Latanoprost. I haven't seen many others sharing their experience with it Latanoprost though so wondering if it would have any efficacy or not. I'm currently not applying anything topical, only orally.

I recently took the test and just got the results back. I understand that the results must be taken with a grain of salt though.

I'm considering Dr. Alexander also so very interested in seeing others' updates, results and feedback.

I just got my blood tests results back and although most were normal, my Ferritin was very low! I'm going to supplement my Ferritin levels until they get into the upper, normal ranges.

I've been on oral Finasteride and topical Minoxidil for roughly 7-8 years. It maintained for a while but stopped working. I switched to oral Minoxidil (5mg/day) and oral Dutasteride (.5mg/day) 9 months ago and my hair loss continues to get worse. Its absolutely doing nothing for me (positive or negative). My hair continues to become thinner and weaker. Most people state that oral should always work better than topical but I'm wondering if there have been situations (stomach issues) where topical may work better. I'm also considering Pyrilutamide or RU58841 as a topical but not sure how effect (or safe) that would be. If anybody has any thoughts on the matter, I'd love to hear. Thanks.

@Melvin- ModeratorPrior to beginning this Xyon topical Dutasteride formula a few months ago, were you taking either Finasteride or Dutasteride in the oral form? If so, what were you experiencing that caused you to make this switch? I'm currently taking .5mg oral Dutasteride but not experiencing any benefits so wondering if applying directly to the scalp for some of us would be more efficacious.

@FinallyHT I began the 2.5mg 6 months ago with no positive results, only a continuous shed since then. I'd like to think the shed would be positive if it hasn't lasted for several months but from what I read, the positive sheds usually only last a couple of weeks, not 6 months.

@Melvin- Moderator No negative sides other than massive shed/hair fall. Coincidently have had 2 different doctor appts and both checked my heart rate and blood pressure and all were normal with no changes between baseline and on 2.5mg Minoxidil. I've seen your videos where you mention significant improvement on oral Minoxidil so hoping for the same. Since I didn't get on 2.5mg, hoping 5mg does the trick.

As I still continue to lose ground on 2.5mg of oral Minoxidil (6 months so far after switching from topical), I am going to increase my dosage. I take my 2.5mg pill in the morning. Would you recommend applying topical Minoxidil in the evening or or taking another 2.5mg pill in the evening to get a total dose of 5mg/day? I plan on doing one or the other in order to see some results (I do not have any side effects with 2.5 now. I also had been taking 1mg of oral FIN daily but am moving on to .5mg oral Dut daily).

I'd like to hear others input if they've been using also.

Also interested in hearing others' results!

@NikosHair I appreciate your feedback (along with others). I recently turned 50 years old. I've always been relatively healthy (daily exercise, zero sugar, never smoked or have done drugs, eat lean protein and vegetables mostly). My only vice is alcohol, usually 2 drinks/night that can vary from beer, wine or vodka type. I weigh 145lbs and have 11% body fat so overall healthy. I agree with you that things can change with our bodies and hair but I was hoping that Fin and Min would keep the hairs strong for many more years to come. I suppose I could cut out the alcohol but beyond that I don't think there is much more I can do related to lifestyle. I am scheduled to get a hair transplant in September 2023 (I had maintained my hair for about 7 years without any noticiable loss until recently) but if I can't at least stop the shed and get back to maintaining what I have, I may need to cancel it due to the inevitable.

I'm finding that 7-8 years of maintaining hair on oral Finasteride (1mg/day), its no longer working. Is it more recommended to increase the dose of Finasteride or simply switch to Dutasteride? I actually did add .5mg of oral Dutasteride once/week to my regimen with daily Fin 6 months ago but I'm still quickly losing ground. Seems my next option is to either increase my daily oral Finasteride dosage and eliminate Dutasteride or to eliminate Finasteride and start taking .5mg of oral Dutasteride every other day or even every day. I'm also open to switching from oral meds to topical but most feedback states that oral meds always work better. What is recommended for my situation?

@arthurSam I am not able to find anything related to "fragon"

I'm a NW4a currently taking oral Finasteride (1mg daily since 2014), oral Dutasteride (.5mg once/week since Aug 2022) and oral Minoxidil (2.5mg daily since Oct 2022 – had been using topical Minoxidil since 2014 previously but scalp can be sensitive so wanted to cut back on itchiness). On these oral meds, I’m not seeing any benefits and am still losing ground (daily hair loss in sink more than in previous years/months, hair miniaturization). Because I haven’t seen any stabilization since 2020, I’m going to begin microneedling my scalp. I have read that Microneedling helps absorption of topical application of some of these meds (not sure if just one, two or all three) but I feel like going topical with everything would be my next best chance to at least stop hair loss even if no re-growth. Also, I'd like to minimize how much of each of those meds gets into my entire system outside of my scalp (On these oral meds, I didn’t notice sides initially but now have have typical sides like lower libido, soft morning wood but not completely gone, which is not great and can be tolerable to an extent but only seems worth it if I were getting obvious benefits in my hair, which I’m not). Usually people are apprehensive about switching from topical to oral but I don’t see many posts with experiences about going from oral back to topical for any of the 3 meds I mentioned. In going topical Minoxidil is easy to find over the counter and as for the other 2, I probably don’t need to use both FIN and DUT so just need to pick one. I know Finasteride can still go systemic (if dose too high). Dutasteride isn’t supposed to go systemic because of molecular weight but that leaves me wondering how it reaches the hair follicles and if it will work as well. Curious as to how others chose topical FIN or DUT over the other and what their experiences were. Does anyone have good/bad experiences with using topical MIN/DUT or MIN/FIN together at the same time? Is there a MIN/DUT or MIN/FIN combo properly dosed and distributed (not sure what recommended doses are for each; as for distribution, Liposomal silicone based vehicles seem to be the best option) that exists already from in from one of the big boys available in the US (Hims, Keeps, Happy Head, Strut, Musely, etc.) or should I have compounded from independent pharmacy? Once I convert to topical should I apply everything at same time before bed? I’m wondering if I should simply start topical and stop oral on same day or if there should be overlap to not jar my system? Should I expect a large shed in making these changes? If anybody has experience going from oral to topical, I'd love to hear our experience (or if you recommend that I don’t make the change with some reasoning behind it), I’d appreciate it. Thank you.

@Doron Harati Do you have your FIN and MIN combined or apply them separately. If separately, do you apply at same time at night and if so, does it matter which you apply first?

@r0entgenYour question is one I have been trying to figure out myself. I hope to see some additional responses.

I have had 3 sessions (1/month by my derm) but at a depth of only .75. I did have pinpoint bleeding in some areas but not all. It was def more painful in front and less painful on top. I may need to go up to 1-1.5 for the top.